The Hellenic Navy (HN) (Greek: Πολεμικό Ναυτικό, Polemikó Naftikó, abbreviated ΠΝ) is the naval force of Greece, part of the Greek Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy has its roots in the naval forces of various Aegean Islands, which fought in the Greek War of Independence. During the periods of monarchy (1833–1924 and 1936–1973) it was known as the Royal Navy (Βασιλικόν Ναυτικόν, Vasilikón Naftikón, abbreviated ΒΝ).The total displacement of all the navy's vessels is approximately 150,000 tons.The motto of the Hellenic Navy is "Μέγα το της Θαλάσσης Κράτος" from Thucydides' account of Pericles' oration on the eve of the Peloponnesian War. This has been roughly translated as "Great is the country that controls the sea". The Hellenic Navy's emblem consists of an anchor in front of a crossed Christian cross and trident, with the cross symbolizing Greek Orthodoxy, and the trident symbolizing Poseidon, the god of the sea in Greek mythology. Pericles' words are written across the top of the emblem. "The navy, as it represents a necessary weapon for Greece, should only be created for war and aim to victory."...............The Hellenic Merchant Marine refers to the Merchant Marine of Greece, engaged in commerce and transportation of goods and services universally. It consists of the merchant vessels owned by Greek civilians, flying either the Greek flag or a flag of convenience. Greece is a maritime nation by tradition, as shipping is arguably the oldest form of occupation of the Greeks and a key element of Greek economic activity since the ancient times. Nowadays, Greece has the largest merchant fleet in the world, which is the second largest contributor to the national economy after tourism and forms the backbone of world shipping. The Greek fleet flies a variety of flags, however some Greek shipowners gradually return to Greece following the changes to the legislative framework governing their operations and the improvement of infrastructure.Blogger Tips and Tricks
This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς....This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς.........

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Meteor explodes over Arizona..[ 3193 ]

Meteor explodes over Arizona; big meteor shower begins

By Ben Brumfield, CNN
December 11, 2013 -- Updated 1136 GMT (1936 HKT)


(CNN) -- A resounding boom over Tucson, Arizona, roused residents from their dinner tables Tuesday and had them pointing up to the sky.
The largest meteor shower of the year seemed to be giving them a sneak preview, as a whopper of a rock roared past over their heads.
It exploded, rattling their houses, and a dash cam captured it on video as it vanished in a bright blaze.
The spectacular annual Geminid meteor shower officially starts Thursday. Now, even with 100 to 120 meteors per hour at its peak, it has given itself a tough act to follow.
Astronomer Tod Lauer heard the blast but did not bother to look outside.
"We were eating dinner and heard a good bang that rattled the roof of our house. I dismissed it as a sonic boom," he posted to Facebook.
Then a local TV station phoned the scientist, who studies images from the Hubble Space Telescope, to ask him to explain what had happened.
Frantic eyewitnesses across the state called local news outlets to report what they saw.
The explosion shook Tony Kubrak's house, too, he told CNN affiliate KGUN, which received a flood of calls and hundreds of posts to its Facebook page.
Kubrak went outside to check it out.
"I see this tremendous, white, bright light in the western sky. And it was just ... it was absolutely enormous, I couldn't believe it."
Others took to social media.
"Did y'all see the meteor that flew above Tucson? Crazzzzy. That was toooo craaaazy!" Tucson resident Eric Gomez posted on Twitter.
People around the world can enjoy what bedazzled Arizonans until at least Monday, NASA said. The Geminid meteor shower this year will be "rich in fire balls."
They can be viewed best from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. ET.
"Of all the debris streams Earth passes through every year, the Geminids are by far the most massive," said NASA astronomer Bill Cooke. "When we add up the amount of dust in the Geminid stream, it outweighs other streams by factors of 5 to 500."
NASA calls it the 900-pound gorilla of meteor showers.
Most meteor showers are caused by comets, but not Geminid, which contains the name of the constellation Gemini.
A large space rock named 3200 Pheathon flings the debris that makes the sparkling magic.
CNN's Mayra Cuevas contributed to this report.
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